Motor vehicle seats are increasingly equipped with functions which increase the comfort and the safety of the users of the seats. For example, it is possible to inflate air cushions in the side elements of the motor vehicle seat, such as in back rest or in the seat cushions, as a function of the respective driving situation. While cornering, it is possible to inflate the particular seat side element which is arranged in the outer radius of a bend in the seat so as to cause the user or occupant of the seat to be secured better to the seat. Furthermore, the air cushions can be designed to increase the seating comfort and to adapt the contour of the seat to the occupant of the seat.
DE 10 2005 059 997 A1 discloses a safety device in a motor vehicle seat in which an airbag which can be inflated by means of a gas generator is also coupled to an activator which can repeatedly inflate the airbag with gas in a reversible fashion. By virtue of the arrangement of the airbag in the side element it is possible for an occupant to be better secured to the seat when the volume of the airbag is increased by the activator. The side element of the seat is increased in size and is moved in the direction of the occupant of the seat. In the case of an accident, a gas generator is activated and causes the airbag to emerge from the motor vehicle seat so that the airbag can extend between the occupant of the seat and the structure of the vehicle.
EP 1 140 572 B1 discloses a motor vehicle seat with an upholstered seat component in which an airbag is inflated in the event of an accident and at the same time ruptures the covering material at a connecting seam between two blanks of the covering material. Between these blanks of covering material, a strip of a fabric material is inserted which permits the side element of the seat to increase in size. Instead of a freely unfolded airbag, the side elements which project beyond the backrest of the seat or the seat cushion are inflated tautly so that the protruding part of the side elements is increased. Within the side elements, relatively positionally stable air cushions are used and by means of the air cushions a vehicle occupant is cushioned with respect to intruding objects and is stabilized in a desired sitting position. With such an embodiment, only a limited increase in the volume of the side elements is possible.